British sportswriter trains at ALA Gym for pro boxing debut

CEBU, Philippines - In what could be a historic move, British sports journalist James Goyder trains at Cebu's fabled ALA Gym in preparation for his professional boxing debut on November 9 at the Marina Bay Sands Hotel in  Singapore.

“I was very lucky that I have been introduced to Sir Antonio Aldeguer who generously allowed me to train at the ALA Gym, which is the best place possible for a boxer to prepare for a fight,” said the 31-year-old Goyder.

Goyder, who decided to swap his pen for a pair of gloves, will face Thai light middleweight contender Syafiq ‘The Slasher’ Samad in the undercard of the WBA super featherweight title match between Indonesian boxing superstar Chris John and Thai Chonlatarn Piriyapinyo.

Aside from writing for a Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) website, Goyder has covered several boxing events in the Philippines, the most recent was the 'Pinoy Pride XVII' last October 20 at the Arena of the SM Mall of Asia in Pasay City.

Goyder has been holding his training camp at the ALA Gym under the guidance of former Oriental and Pacific Boxing Federation (OPBF) welterweight champion Rev ‘The Gentle Giant’ Santillan.

“I make my living as a writer and I fight for the challenge, not for the money. I know Rev saved a lot of money up during his boxing career but then lost it all caring for his wife who was terminally ill and he is also possibly the nicest guy in the whole boxing world so I wanted to do something to help him,” he said. (FREEMAN)